Many families in the base would give Liu Xiaohong old socks that had been patched up or a small coat that their own children had outgrown.

If the person was kind-hearted, it wasn’t a big deal.

But there were always stepmothers who, after accepting things with a smiling face, would use them as an excuse to punish the children later.

So, Chen Lina didn’t dare to give the girl anything nice.

She only dared to give her some cooked millet.

It was warming, filling, and practical.

After all, food in the stomach was the most reliable.

“Old Nie, do you know what time it is?” After moving all the goods, Chen Lina went to knock on the study door.

Even in the cold weather, Nie Bozhao was still writing.

He looked up and said, “How long has it been? You’re already back?”

She opened the window and showed him the mess caused by their son.

Nie Bozhao hurriedly said, “I’ll clean it up. I’ll clean it up right away.”

He was quick to act.

He went out and shouted, “Emergency assembly!” His two sons ran over immediately.

“Under the command of the leader, we need to build a fort and hold this hill. Weimin, what do you think?”

“Use wood,” replied Nie Weimin.

“Exactly, hurry up and get all the wood together. We’ll build the fort together.”

The two children competed to move the wood, dragging it all over the yard like a dog pulling on a leash.

Well, he really knew how to coax the kids.

“Report, mission complete,” said Er Dan, the most fearless and fastest worker.

As for Nie Weimin, he was more cautious with his clothes, careful not to wrinkle the sharp creases on his pants or scuff his shoes.

He was meticulous, so his work was slower, but the pile of wood was stacked neatly, as if cut by a knife.

Though slow, he was serious.

Not happy with Er Dan’s pile, he, like a little adult, rearranged the wood after everyone had gone inside.

Er Dan shouted from the window, “Brother, come on! It’s time to eat, mom’s frying twisted dough!”

“Can you stop playing with the wood and coal? Look at how messy the yard is.” Nie Weimin whispered outside the window, tugging on his little brother’s ear.

Erdan, looking carefree, responded, “I’ll clean it up.”

“You’re not cleaning anything! The yard still has to be cleaned by mom. Can you even handle the big broom? Don’t do that again.”

“Why?”

“If she gets tired, maybe one day she’ll just leave,” said Nie Weimin, his voice filled with a fear deeply rooted in him—his mom often threatened divorce, talking about leaving the family.

The thought scared him deeply.

The kitchen smelled really good, with the scent of oil wafting out.

Of course, because they had received welfare, every household in the base was making delicious food.

It wasn’t just the Nie family’s kitchen that smelled inviting.

But there was something special about their fragrance. It had the perfect balance of aromas, which made it feel so comforting.

For the New Year, the first thing to do was of course fry twisted dough.

Chen Lina’s twisted dough was different from others.

Most people, trying to save oil, fried thick dough pieces that would get hard over time, requiring soup to soften them.

But she fried small, delicate dough twists, mixed with clear oil and eggs, then flavored them with seasonings, crispy and not easily spoiled.

After frying, they were rolled in sugar to make them sweet and crunchy. Once done, they were placed in a paper box lined with oil paper.

One or two would be served for breakfast or whenever the kids were hungry.

They were great at filling empty stomachs.

With such a big family, food was always a big consumption.

And there was only one bag of fine noodles, so of course, it had to be used carefully to make the best dishes.

“Just eating dough twists won’t fill you up, will it?” Nie Bozhao didn’t really like these foods.

After freezing all day, he was craving lamb.

It was already 10 PM.

The kids had filled up on dough twists, but what they really wanted now was jiangshui mian (sour noodle soup).

The thin noodles with the sour soup were the perfect antidote to the greasiness of fried dough.

Chen Lina opened a big pot, revealing stewed beef brisket.

She raised her eyebrows and said, “We have fine flour today, so wait here. Let me try and see if I can stretch some hand-pulled noodles.”

Hand-pulling noodles was a skillful task.

Who would have known, as she opened a bowl and took out a small amount of fine wheat flour, kneading it into a round shape before rolling it into thin strips, folding and folding.

But after a few slaps and shakes on the board, the noodles became thin as dragon whiskers.

“Mom is a magician,” Er Dan exclaimed in awe.

Stewed beef brisket, rich in both fat and lean meat, was too much for Nie Weimin, but in winter, food could be stored for tomorrow.

He only asked for half a bowl of sour noodles.

After eating the thin noodles, he brushed his teeth and went to bed.

Er Dan, full of energy, ate another bowl of beef brisket noodles before heading to bed.

After dinner, Nie Bozhao was unsure of what else to do with the few reusable condoms in the small storage room, but in the end, they remained unused.

At 11 PM, when the kids were asleep, Chen Lina said, “There are guests coming over tonight.”

As usual, she laid out the newspaper for Nie Bozhao, brewed some tea, and set him up in the most comfortable chair in the living room.

In a white shirt, work clothes, and black-rimmed glasses, he looked like a cultured engineer, not having much power over personnel, but still highly respected.

Meanwhile, the young university student’s wife busied herself with cleaning the table, arranging the newspapers, running around.

All that was left was to rub his back and serve him tea.

“Comrade Xiao Chen, thank you for your support,” Chen Lina said, giving him plenty of face in front of others.

“Likewise, you must also follow the proper manners with my brother-in-law,” Chen Lina laughed.

Qin Sheng came in, picked up a cup of tea, and directly asked, “Comrade Xiao Chen, since you’re here tonight, will you tell me who’s been secretly smuggling goods into the base? Where can I find him?”

Chen Lina smiled, “I won’t hide it from you. It’s Nie Gong’s ex-brother-in-law, Sun Dabao. Nie Gong, am I right?”

Nie Bozhao almost jumped up in shock.

Chen Lina was about to reveal Sun Dabao’s secrets.

And yet, he himself, in his half-raised arm, became the tool for her to eliminate Sun Dabao!

“You all know more than I do about Sun Xiaoyue’s background. She came from Tacheng, and they say her military officer husband passed away, so she became a widow and returned.

But we all know that although the compensation for soldiers who die in battle isn’t very high due to the national circumstances, it’s still over 400 yuan.

Additionally, the military must arrange work for the families of soldiers, and at the very least, they’ll receive a monthly allowance of at least 10 yuan. Sun Xiaoyue, however, was not assigned any work, and more importantly, she managed to leave the organization’s scrutiny and directly marry someone.

Her explanation about her husband’s death is vague, which is enough to suggest that her husband didn’t die a glorious death.”

Qin Sheng nodded.

“Sun Xiaoyue can’t even claim her husband was a martyr, which can only mean one thing: he probably committed some kind of economic crime.”

“She came back from Tacheng and has been looking for a partner for nearly a year, hasn’t she? All this time, she hasn’t looked anywhere else, only at the oil base, aiming to get in there. Once she gets in, all sorts of Soviet products will be sold there. And your security team couldn’t even trace where these goods came from?”

“It should be Liu Han, who brings them back whenever he drives out,” Qin Sheng said, but he knew well that this was a matter of “don’t ask, don’t tell.”

“But because Soviet reconnaissance planes are always in the sky, Liu Han couldn’t deviate from his route. So, where did he get these items from?” He was still puzzled.

“You want to investigate? You could send someone to follow his car, but if you do, he won’t make any connections.

I’ll tell you where, right near where the young intellectuals are digging the alkali ditches right now.

That place is on your team’s main route, close to our base but far from Mulan Farm.

And that alkali ditch was ordered to be dug by Sun Dabao. Let me ask you: why would he dig an alkali ditch right near the base if not to meet Liu Han?”

Chen Lina continued, “It sounds like that’s the case, but with so many young intellectuals there, it’s not certain that the connection is with Sun Dabao.”

Chen Lina said, “Sun Dabao manages the Mulan Farm’s vehicle team, which can travel to Tacheng, so he’s able to get the cheapest sewing machines, without having to go through several intermediaries. Moreover, because it’s the security team’s vehicles, no one checks them wherever they go. That’s how Sun Xiaoyue got the 60-yuan sewing machine. Is that clear now?”

“Comrade Nie, everyone in our base has deep feelings for Comrade Sun, especially since you are a senior member of the base. And Sun Dabao, he’s her most trusted brother. So, what should we do about this?”

The problem was now passed to Nie Bozhao.

He was the brother-in-law of her late wife, the precious elder brother.

All this, just for the sake of getting into the oil base to sell goods.

To pressure a group of young intellectuals into digging alkali ditches in the middle of winter.

And to get a female intellectual to marry him, letting her nearly freeze to death.

Nie Bozhao thought for a moment, then asked Chen Lina, “When can we go to catch Sun Dabao’s people?”

Chen Lina said, “That’s easy. You can bring a few big guard dogs from the base. I’ll let them sniff a scent, and if Liu Han smells like it on the day, you can wait by the alkali ditch. The dogs will lead you to them, and you’ll catch them.”

The scent they used was quite distinct. Both Sun Xiaoyue and Sun Dabao liked to spray cologne, which had a strong, lingering fragrance that the dogs could remember easily.

“Here’s what we’ll do. When you’re ready, I’ll go with you,” Nie Bozhao said after thinking it over. “I’m also a part of the base, and the Republic’s current situation wasn’t easy to come by.

What our base has today wasn’t easy either. Comrade Xiao Chen is right—lack of food and clothing, we can overcome that. It’s not a big mistake for family members to buy things outside.

But bringing capitalist goods into the base? That’s not acceptable. I’m her brother-in-law, so I need to go with you.”

About four or five days later, Qin Sheng said they were ready to capture someone.

When Chen Lina saw that Nie Bozhao had taken a gun from his study and tucked it into his waistband, she was surprised. “You’re still carrying a gun? Isn’t it illegal for private citizens to own guns now?”

“We were issued these for protection. Sun Dabao also has guns, several of them. His security team is authorized to carry weapons. I need one for protection,” he explained.

“But you’re his brother-in-law. He wouldn’t point a gun at you. Besides, you’re just going to catch someone, and maybe remove his position as head of the security team. Why are you carrying a gun? Are you planning a shootout?”

“You don’t understand Sun Dabao,” Nie Bozhao said.

It seemed that all engineers liked to play with guns.

He stood by the window, disassembled and reassembled the gun in 30 seconds, though he was clearly not satisfied with his speed.

“He’s been spoiled since he was young. He’s always been selfish, wanting everything for himself. Even though Sun Xiaoyue’s husband is dead, she still has a brother working in the mines, and another one is the head of Mulan Farm. That guy is wild.

Besides, the working class is the biggest power in the world.

He’s the production model at the farm. To deal with him, it’s not as simple as you think.”

“Nie, don’t scare me. Is there really going to be trouble?”

“If we don’t catch him, we’ll come up empty. But if we do, he’ll definitely go to jail. Do you think it’ll be trouble?” Nie Bozhao said.

He was feeling conflicted—caught between his feelings for his late wife, his loyalty to the organization, and the responsibility to protect the base.

“If I sacrifice myself, remember to tell the kids my story.” Before leaving, he tried to joke with Chen Lina one last time.